Most people know that many different foods come from hogs, such as pork chops, pig's feet, pork roast, entire hogs roasted "luau" style with apples in their mouths, ribs, pork rinds, ham, bacon, sausage, pepperoni, and to some degree hot dogs and "Chiclets". But hogs are also used for many non-food products, which are commonly called by-products. No matter what you call 'em, though, they're still yummy!

In history class, you may have learned how settlers from other countries and Native Americans used as many parts of animals and plants as they could to make clothes, tools, dishes and other utensils. It may sound icky, but making the most of their resources was something these people had to do, since they weren't as techno-savvy as we are now - most of their computers had monochrome screens, for instance. So not using as many parts as possible of an animal or plant was considered wasteful and downright inconsiderate, punishable by up to 6 months in the stocks and a public "tar 'n' feathering" (in those days the death penalty had not been thought of).

Today, white people have stolen these ideas from foreign people and Native Americans much as they have stolen everything else, and honkees now proudly make the most of their resources with a wide variety of pork by-products. Of course, hogs today are no longer in short supply. Quite the contrary! Often you will find so many hogs together in one pen that they cannot even turn around! This truly is the Golden Era of hog raising.

However, in order to make sure that the kind man who raises the hogs makes money, a use is found for every part! In fact, no other animal provides a wider range of products than the hog. From life-saving pharmaceuticals to artery-strangling bacon , pork by-products are an important part of our daily lives, and there's nothing we can do about it!

Here are some of the life-saving pork by-products provided by the hog:

• Heart valves (used to treat people with malfunctioning heart valves)
• Insulin (used to treat people with diabetes)
• Skin (used to treat people with severe burns or skin rashes)
• Flesh (tastes mighty good!)
• Fat (good to chew on while waiting for bones to set)

Here are just a few of the different pork by-products we use today. Take a scavenger hunt in your house to see how many items you have from the list below. If you are a true scavenger, you will probably be able to assemble an entire pig from its constituent parts! But ask your parents for permission first.

If you would like to learn more about the pork industry and pork by-products, e-mail the National Pork People Council and request a copy of "the Pork Industry's Great!", a brochure that highlights today's pork industry and how it has changed throughout our country's history, especially since Upton Sinclair wrote "The Jungle"! Make sure you include your mailing address in your request!